Watching Dog and his team of bounty hunters seek out a fugitive on A&E’s Dog the Bounty Hunter is like a late night overdose of caffeine—the need for sleep dissipates, and euphoria sets in. The reality series follows Dog and his familial team of bounty hunters, including his well-endowed wife Beth and two of his 13 sons, Leland and Duane Lee, as they scour the streets of Hawaii looking for law breakers out on bail who have failed to appear in court—among them methamphetamine addicts and perpetrators of domestic violence. Smooth talking, fast thinking, and with knowledge of all the tricks in the proverbial book, Duane “Dog” Chapman, a convicted felon himself, sports a blonde pompadour paired with a leather vest (sans shirt), and steel-toe cowboy boots. He has literally never let a fugitive get away.

The reality series is on at moderately random (and sometimes irregular) times, often in the middle of the night. I sacrifice much to watch a half hour of men with muscles, the thrill of chasing a bad guy, and gallant displays of machismo—Leland, arguably the hunk of the team, fully equipped with muscles and tattoos, never fails to protect his younger sister and fellow bounty hunter Baby Lyssa, as evidenced by one of my personal favorite episodes, “The Smackdown of Baby Lyssa.”

Self-described “second chance people,” Dog and Beth strive to find ’em and fix ’em. The empathy they show for (most) cons is inspiring. Their comic-book super hero looks—which were spoofed on South Park—add to the fun of watching. If you, like I, are fascinated by how other people live in this world, enjoy a good chase with a (usually) happy ending in which you can be optimistic that a criminal will reconsider his life choices, tune into A&E Tuesdays at 9 p.m. for episodes, or check out A&E.com for clips.